


School Daze

by bimothra



Category: OK K.O.! Let's Be Heroes
Genre: 'Look at me I am the captain now' timeline fuckery, (eventually) - Freeform, Call that Darrell: Three Houses, Junior members aren't inducted yet, LaserBox, Laserblast gets six robot children, Laserblast is a POINT Prep head AU, M/M, POINT Prep - Freeform, Post-Lad and Logic, Timeline Fuckery, You won't BELIEVE how much timeline fuckery
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-20
Updated: 2020-03-10
Packaged: 2021-02-28 02:55:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 14,094
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22816579
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bimothra/pseuds/bimothra
Summary: P.O.I.N.T has gained an unexpected surge in popularity after their heroic feats. Instead of going through with contacting their junior operatives to-be, the fan demand has them setting up the prestigious P.O.I.N.T Prep, a school by heroes for heroes. The discipline head of charisma, Laserblast, isn't all too fond of being in charge of so much despite having so little power. He's already formulating a plan for his research, but all he needs now is a lab... And a certain Lad Boxman may have just the resources he needs. He won't get it all for free, though, as Lad Boxman asks for a surprising favor in return.
Relationships: Laserblast/Lad Boxman, Lord Boxman/Professor Venomous
Comments: 26
Kudos: 63





	1. Chapter 1

Wisdom. Strength. Charisma. 

These were the three virtues that dominated the hero world these days. You couldn’t be strong and wise, strong and charismatic… You had one forte and you stuck with it. 

Laserblast thought it was inane.

Which was bad, considering he was the head of the charisma discipline. 

Of course, he had seen that distinction coming from a mile away- Greyman was the ‘brains’ of the team, undoubtedly, and Foxtail could crush someone just by looking at them wrong. He couldn’t deny that he himself had the most stage presence out of the P.O.I.N.T members. He had his massive army of fans to attest to that. He was so good at being a charismatic superhero, in fact, that only his fellow P.O.I.N.T members knew that his lasers weren’t even his power! 

Pah. Charisma. He really was a dancing monkey. That’s all he was good for. 

This wasn’t some kind of revolutionary epiphany from the likes of Laserblast, though. He had long grown tired of his inadequacy. What kind of hero needed to borrow from others’ power to fuel his own? It was useless at best, and villainous at worst. However, before he could build up the strength to voice his concerns to his team, P.O.I.N.T’s popularity exploded majorly. Foxtail had even been seeking out junior members, but the boom in activity had left them with nothing but hopeful heroes flooding their inboxes and voicemails, burying any real candidates in lieu of level-ones who wore Laserblast shirts and Foxtail capes. 

The staff room still had the pictures, he recalled. Three framed photos of a candidate each of them had picked. Foxtail had her eyes on a certain Eugene Garcia, better known by his wrestling persona, ‘El-Bow’. Laserblast could see clear as day why she had picked him, and as an apprentice, too- When P.O.I.N.T had gone undercover to watch one of his wrestling matches, his signature elbow drop had been so gnarly that he could feel the pain from his seat. He was a spluttering fool when they had cornered him after the match. No wisdom or charisma to be found. 

Greyman’s pick was the powerful- and very fetching- Carol Kincaid, or ‘Silver Spark’, as she insisted they call her. At first, Laserblast was confused. A natural-born fighter with seemingly no end to her boundless enthusiasm, she didn’t seem the type for Greyman to pick as his successor. Meeting her in person made it click immediately. Only a nerd like Greyman could find someone with encyclopedic knowledge like hers! She seemed to know everything about P.O.I.N.T. It was like meeting one of their many fangirls before the boom had even happened- but Laserblast couldn’t deny that her power was fierce. Fiercer than his. He’d have to avoid the girl. She made him so… jealous. 

Finally, there was his own choice. Laserblast had admittedly gotten distracted, and totally forgot that they were scouting candidates. When Foxtail had asked him about his ideas, he panicked slightly and selected a marsupial martial artist who had made his acquaintance a while back- Rippy Roo. Sure, she wasn’t a paragon of charisma, like El-Bow for strength, and Silver Spark for wisdom, but she was just… Too dang cute! He wanted to squish her little cheeks so bad, and bop those large red boxing gloves. 

Too bad he couldn’t, now that P.O.I.N.T was so busy. The annoying- er, adoring fans were the least of their problems at the moment. The popularity spike had caused Foxtail to come up with the brilliant plan to start up a school for heroes. A preparatory crash course for heroic work, that would be the only field of work that would understand why the teachers would have to bolt mid-lesson, but it still rubbed Laserblast the wrong way. Foxtail had gotten so caught up in this academy business, sometimes he wondered if she forgot that they were superheroes. 

Nonetheless, it was fun enough, he supposed. The students of P.O.I.N.T Prep were promising young heroes, and he could feel the enthusiasm radiating off them, like a glorb freshly dropped from the Lakewood tree. There were a few special kids that would come visit him after class, yammering about that day’s lesson with such an innocent look on their face.

...Does he want children?

Laserblast shook his inner monologue out of his head. He couldn’t be sitting around doing nothing. He had a class to teach! Getting up, Laserblast quickly made his bed. Greyman loved to lecture him about how he ‘shouldn’t lounge in the bed if he wasn’t sleeping’. Luckily, Greyman wasn’t watching, and Laserblast could do whatever he wanted. He quietly adjusted his P.O.I.N.T Prep official uniform and went out the door.

Not before grabbing his helmet. Whoops! 

The prestigious school building had long since overtaken P.O.I.N.T HQ, so it wasn’t a far walk for Laserblast. The building was tall, mighty… Almost majestic, in a sense. The true epitome of a school for the gifted and talented. He pushed open the doors, joining the growing crowd of students in the front hallway for the hustle and bustle of afternoon classes. 

“Good afternoon, Mr. Laserblast!” 

“Hi, Mr. Laserblast!”

“Laserblast! Laserblast! Sign my POW card!” 

Laserblast chuckled, grabbing a pen from a student’s outstretched arms. “Hi. Hello. Good morning. Sure!” He said, trying to reply to as many students as he could. Sure, they all had him as a teacher every once in a while, but he supposed he couldn’t blame them for getting starstruck. 

It’s not like they knew the real him, anyways.

After apologizing quickly to some of his clingier pupils, Laserblast made his way to his classroom. He opened the door as he heard the bell ring, students trailing in behind him. 

“Afternoon, students. I hope you guys had a good morning?” Laserblast said, a trademark catlike smirk forming on his face. “You guys ready for the big megafootball game coming up?” 

The students all nodded eagerly, with a few of them quietly whispering to their friends about their plans for the game. He could pick out a few pieces of dialogue that was undeniably thanks to P.O.I.N.T Prep propaganda from Foxtail. Jeez. Her and her sports. 

“Alright, well, you can focus more on the game when you’re in Foxtail’s class. For now? It’s my time,” he said with a grin, as he popped a trademark red sucker into his mouth. “And I’ve got a fun lesson prepared for you guys.” 

Laserblast turned around and started sketching on the board. Any pupil of his would be quick to point out the almost scientific quality of his drawings. “Yesterday we focused on a lot of hero stuff. But today’s lesson focuses on a hero’s breakfast, lunch and dinner-“ 

He paused for effect, before drawing P.O.I.N.T’s old nemesis- or, at least, the creation of his that people would actually recognize. He had seem Steamborg a million times, so of course drawing him by memory would be easy as pie. 

“Villains.” 

“Today, we’re gonna focus on villainous charisma. It’s a two-way road, y’know! All those strategies we use- making a good first impression, instilling fear in villains… They can use it right back at us. So. A suave villain shows up, complete with this scary purple smoke. Wooooh,” Laserblast said, drawing some cloudy shapes below Steamborg.

“Destroy P.O.I.N.T,” he continued in a grumbly voice, doing a purposefully bad imitation of Steamborg. He grinned when he could hear laughter behind him. 

“You don’t know their power level. They look pretty scary. What do you do?” Laserblast stopped. He turned around to face the class, and a wave of hands shot up. “Yes! You, in the front there.”

“The smoke is obviously a diversion. The villain must want to distract from something obvious. So they have a glaring weak point!” The student answered, nearly shooting out of their seat with excitement.

“Exactly! That’s why you can’t assume anything out of just an entrance… because sometimes?” Laserblast smirked, tapping a knuckle on the board. The chalk dust fell, and the chalk Steamborg was no more. “A villain might be all bark.”

The class cheered, and Laserblast gave a small chuckle. He wasn’t the discipline head of charisma for nothing. 

A single person was clapping far beyond the time everyone else had died down, and Laserblast curiously scanned his class. Who could it be?

“Yes, yes, well DONE, Laserblast. But I have a question!” A mint-haired man piped up from the back row. Someone he didn’t recognize. 

“Well, sir, if you have a question…” Laserblast put a hand on one of his helmet’s side discs. “You’re gonna have to raise your hand.”

The lad sighed, raising what looked like a chicken claw in the air. 

“Yes.”

“My question, before you so RUDELY interrupted me, was this! You SAY that there are villains who are all talk because of their evil panache. But WHAT would you do if you find a villain…”

“WHO’S BARK AND BITE?!” The man cackled, slamming a button. “DARRELL! NOW!” 

Laserblast was suddenly tackled to the floor by a blur of red and green.

“I got ‘im, daddy! Look! I got Laserblast!” The thing, apparently a robot, judging by the cold metal that touched his skin, took his attention away from Laserblast to brag to the man.

Big mistake. 

The robot’s head was blasted off by a familiar red laser, and the man’s laughter ended very quickly soon after.

“Uh-oh.” 

This time, it was Laserblast doing the tackling- but, of course, this little man had all sorts of surprises up his sleeve. He soon found himself getting lifted up in the air… Because the desk was flying?

How in Cob’s name did this guy manage to weasel in a flying desk?! 

“Oh, did I make that good a first impression, HERO?” The man gloated. “I get it! You just can’t get enough of ol’ Boxy!” 

Laserblast stopped. He had to choose between catching a villain or suffering a humiliating defeat… He had no idea how fast the desk was, or where it went. He had to drop it. The man, surprised, peeked down at Laserblast, who had dropped down onto the floor.

“...You’re not going to chase me or anything?”

Laserblast shook his head. “I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I’m in the middle of a class here… ‘Boxy’.” 

The man’s face flushed a bright red. “That’s- That’s LAD BOXMAN to you! I’ll be back! And I’ll interrupt your stupid class again!” And with that, he zoomed away, the noises of Boxman’s sputtering desk growing quieter and quieter, soon to be replaced with the sound of Foxtail’s booming footsteps. He worried about that woman sometimes. Juggling being a discipline head, the acting dean (she claimed she’d step down as discipline head as soon as she got El-Bow as a candidate, but that hadn’t been working out very well), AND a P.O.I.N.T hero… that couldn’t be good for her. 

Well, it wasn’t him, so he wasn’t cracking under the pressure. That was good. What was less good was Foxtail poking her head in the classroom, prompting a few students to wave.

“Laser! Why’d you let ‘im go? This classroom’s a mess, too!” She said, prodding Laserblast’s chest with her finger and staring him down- not too seriously, of course. 

“He had a flying desk, Foxtail! I didn’t wanna ditch class!” He argued back, scratching his head bashfully.

She sighed. “That’s fair. At least he didn’t cause too much damage. Hey, do me a favour n’ clean up here, alright?” She patted Laserblast’s shoulder, and they shared an affectionate smile with each other. 

“Sure thing, Fox.”

Laserblast turned back to his students and was about to address them after all that tomfoolery, but it must have been his rotten luck that made the bell ring. Ah, well. At least it’d be easier to clean without them in here. He said his goodbyes to his class, and took the opportunity to start tidying up. 

Cob. How could he have been so stupid? Just letting that villain go like that… he could tell Foxtail was judging him for being the weak link that he always has been. 

Scooping up the headless robot that he had blasted only a few minutes ago, he surveyed its weight in his arms. It was quite a fine specimen, actually. 

At first glance, the yellow piece in the middle looked like a weak point, but once he touched it- he didn’t know why he did that, if it really was a weak point it would have exploded in his face- it flew open on a hinge, revealing a dimly glowing cyan sphere.

“A… glorb?” Laserblast said, eyes widening under the helmet. Maybe this villain really was more competent than he thought. He quickly tucked the glorb into a container. It was still full of juice, thankfully, but the simple act of powering the robot had made some of its power disappear. After he took care of the rest of the mess in the classroom, Laserblast decided to head back to his room. This was a matter he needed to look into. 

The glorb floated in its container. Laserblast stared at it. This had gone on for quite a few minutes now. 

“I don’t get it. You have a GLORB, of all things, and you waste it on a cheap robot? Unless you had more, you wouldn’t…” Laserblast trailed off, putting a hand to his temples. 

Power comes from glorbs. And he needed power. This villain used a glorb on a robot, but he had no way of knowing if he just got lucky-

Or did he?

Laserblast quickly darted out of his room, locking the door behind him. He didn’t need to go all the way back to the school, thankfully. What he sought was right in HQ. The rooms’ golden nameplates were hard to read at the speed he was going, but he had been in this building long enough to know where the one he needed was. Finally, he came to a halt, opening the door to the trophy room. To be more precise, the battle trophy room. 

The actual trophy room was across the hall and a bit to the right. This room was what the team could use if they wanted to keep anything of a villain’s they had come across during one of their epic battles. After an embarrassing incident with Greyman last year, they all made sure to be extra careful checking that there wasn’t any tracking device.

Laserblast made his way over to his side of the room. It was the biggest by far, and his teammates had more or less assumed that he kept so many ‘battle trophies’ to gloat. That wasn’t the kind of person he was at all, but it was a lie he let them believe. The real answer was a bit less palatable. He’d study these villains’ powers, their methods, their-

Ah! Here we go.

Laserblast lifted it up in the air with a grin. It was a robotic fish, long depowered, but not rusty. He gave the lower end a squeeze, and the fish’s jaws hinged and unhinged. He could tell it wasn’t an advanced model, so he didn’t bother looking for a glorb slot, but he did know who had made both this fish and the robot he fought earlier.

He turned the fish over on its belly, and read the shining silver text of a trademark. 

‘JUNKFISH: Brought to you by Boxmore’

Just like that, all the memories had come flooding back. The obnoxious Lad Boxman had been one of P.O.I.N.T’s newest regulars before the boom caused an influx of villain challengers! He couldn’t even count how many times he had got bitten by one of that guy’s Junkfish. He always had so many of them, too… 

Boxmore, huh?

Laserblast ran a finger over the silver text once more. “That’s not a name… that’s a company.” 

A made-to-order company, for sure. And a company like that meant a robotics lab, and a glorb supply. If Laserblast could convince this Boxman to share a workspace with him, he could finally start his research for real! All these years of being a weakling, and Boxman would be the key to fix him! Laserblast grinned, almost dropping the Junkfish out of excitement as he ran out of the room.

-Nope, no, holding a Junkfish is too suspicious. Back it went.

Now he’s out! 

Luckily, all his teammates were busy, so they didn’t see Laserblast swing by the garage and contemplate about taking the Powitzer. He decided eventually that it’d be too suspicious, plus it was way too tacky for his liking. Why didn’t the team have their own cars? He would have liked to have a convertible. Those are nice.

Guess he’s walking. 

Laserblast made his way out of HQ, ducking into a nearby forest. He’d taken the trail there many times, and knew exactly where to emerge so that he was far away from P.O.I.N.T, but not so far that everyone would see what he was about to do. Laserblast quickly wrapped a scarf around himself, popping some sunglasses on at the same time. He exchanged his helmet for a baseball cap, and pulled a trench coat out of the backpack he had brought, gently putting the helmet inside instead. 

The perfect civilian disguise for a hero who’s never shown his full face to begin with. 

Wandering without his helmet wasn’t something Laserblast got to do often. If he constantly ditched the helmet, one way or another he’d be found out. He supposed that made this hunt for Boxmore a rare treat, where on the way he could finally get his favourite coffee without it getting too crowded, or look at the animals in the pet shop, because Cob, they were cute, or hang out near the fountain without being asked for pictures…

It felt weird not being noticed. Sure, the paparazzi annoyed him to kingdom corn, but any attention was good attention. Passing people in the street without them giving him so much as a glance made him so… powerless. 

No. He had to stay undercover if he wanted to find Boxmore and become the powerful hero he needed to be. He could survive without a little attention for a while. Laserblast continued to wander the streets, looking for anything that could be related to Boxmore. He passed a local wrestling ring, and looked away, feeling a twinge of guilt. Poor El-Bow. The school had gotten in the way of the guy’s admittance. He had no time to dwell, though, because he saw something on the other side of the shop. On the inside of a store window was what looked like a robot cutting hair!

Bingo. 

The door opened, and he could hear a ringing bell. The robot who was currently cutting looked up, still maintaining a perfect flow. 

“Greetings, customer! Welcome to Logic Cuts. Please be seated- I will be right with you!” He sounded chipper, despite his fairly monotone voice. 

Laserblast cleared his throat. “Actually, I’m here for directions. Would you happen to know where Boxmore is?” 

The robot almost stopped cutting, he seemed so surprised. He looked away for a bit, before turning his head back to Laserblast. “We… are not an affiliate of Boxmore, friend. I am sorry.”

Laserblast chuckled awkwardly. “Ah… My bad.” Did he dare to push on further? He didn’t want to offend the robot, but he was getting tired of looking. “...You don’t know where it is, though?”

The robot paused again, the sound of scissors snipping filling the silence. “Yes, I know where it is. It is three streets up, where you must turn left into an alleyway. Boxmore is on the lot there.”

He grinned. “Hey, thanks, bud! You’ve been a great help.”

The robot raised his scissors. “Are you certain you do not want a touch-up before you go?”

“Nah. I’m good,” he said, dropping a tip into the tip jar. “Consider that a thanks, too!” And with that done, Laserblast made his way out. What a nice robot. 

After a bit more walking, Laserblast knew he had arrived. What other person besides a villain would have a giant, evil factory with BM on the front? Thankfully for this Boxman, P.O.I.N.T has the courtesy to not go raiding hideouts. He knew he had to get his mind off his team, though- this was his errand, after all. 

He ducked back into the alley, and got to work. Coat in, helmet out, et cetera, et cetera. In no time, Laserblast was looking like his good old heroic self again. Thankfully, nobody had seen him, but he knew perfectly well what this looked like- a sting operation that the noble Laserblast was about to finish.

It couldn’t be further from the truth, but what did he care?

Laserblast finally made his way back up to Boxmore’s front entrance, staring at the large, imposing doors. He breathed in, bouncing from one foot to another. 

Well, he had come this far. To chicken out would be stupid.

He knocked on the door


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Laserblast has finally arrived at Boxmore! Everything is going well, and Boxman has agreed to give him some lab space, but he asks for something in return... Did Laser bite off more than he can chew?

To his surprise, he recognized the face at the door- but it wasn’t Lad Boxman. 

“Daddy! It’s Laserblast! I think he’s back to finish the job!” The red robot called, looking inside the factory. 

“WHAT?!”

That didn’t sound good. 

“Uh…” The red robot- has he always been a cyclops?- looked back at Laserblast worriedly. He pulled out an arm cannon and blasted him right in the face.

He should have expected that. 

When Laserblast awoke, he was groggy, and his hands hurt. Although that was probably because they were tied up. 

Captured.

By Lad Boxman, of all people! 

“I gotta say, I knew you P.O.I.N.T heroes were stupid, but charging into my lair like that? Pah!” He heard Boxman’s voice, and looked over.

“...Didn’t you do the same thing, though?” Laserblast said, cocking his head slightly.

“QUIET! YOU’RE CAPTURED! YOU DON’T GET TO MAKE THE QUIPS!” 

Laserblast sighed. “Look. Boxman. I’m not here on hero business. I’m on business, period. I want to make a deal with you.”

Boxman’s little temper tantrum was interrupted by the sheer confusion Laserblast had accidentally caused. “...Huh?” 

“I need a space to do experiments. P.O.I.N.T labs would be too dangerous. I need…” He sighed, swallowing his pride. “You have the space, the equipment I need. Please. I’ll do anything.” 

“Anything?”

“Anything.”

“Aaaaaanything?”

“BOXMAN!” 

Boxman laughed. “What in Cob’s name would a hero need with a lab? Especially one like YOU! I’m no idiot, P.O.I.N.T Palooka, I know a trap when I see it!”

Laserblast sighed. “It’s not a trap. I need power. Listen. I’ll be in big trouble if I’m even here. I promise. Anything you want, I can do it.”

Boxman was about to guffaw mockingly again, but he stopped. Laserblast knew he was thinking about something, but he couldn’t determine what. 

“...You’re one of the teachers at that school, yes?” Boxman said, putting a hand on his hip.  
“That’s right,” Laserblast said with a nod. “Discipline head of charisma.” 

“And during your lesson, you said that everything a hero uses, a villain can use too, yeeees?” 

“...You actually listened?” Laserblast perked up, his visor shimmering. 

“Wha- PSSSH!...Only a little,” Boxman replied under his breath. “Anyways. My point is. If you want to use my lab space, YOU have to enroll MY children in P.O.I.N.T Prep!” 

It was Laserblast’s turn to be stunned. “...Children…?” He knew that the red one had called Boxman ‘daddy’, but he didn’t think…

Boxman sighed. He put a hand to his mouth and whistled. “CHILDREEEEEEEEN!” 

Six loud, metallic THUNKS resounded in the room, as six robots landed in the room where they previously hadn’t been. 

“Hi, daddy!” Most of them said, although Laserblast could have sworn he heard an ‘I am Jethro’ and a ‘Mikayla’ sprinkled in there. The rainbow of robots now standing before him was… unique, to say the least. Although they were mostly humanoid, some of them only had one eye. One had this ginormous nose that looked more like a beak, if anything. Another was simply propelled by treads! 

But these six robots were all that was standing between him and his lab, his experiments… His power. He had to do this. “...Alright. You’ve got yourself a deal. They’ll start first thing tomorrow.” 

“GREAT! Shannon, get him down,” Boxman said, giving an orange-yellow robot near him a nudge.

“You got it, daddy! Watch and learn, bolts-for-brains,” The robot, apparently Shannon, leapt into action- literally. She jumped above Laserblast, as he ducked his head. With a grinding noise, Shannon had cut the rope that bound him in two, and he fell to the floor. 

Ouch. 

“So I’ll see you at the lab tomorrow, then,” Laserblast said, pulling himself up and offering a hand. 

Boxman took it, grinning, and gave it a good shake. “Sure thing!” He turned to face his children. “Now, children, Laserblast here has agreed to sneak you into P.O.I.N.T Prep so you can become stronger and finally DESTROY those HEROES!- Ah, no offense.”

“None taken.”  
“Ahem- So if you don’t behave yourselves, if I hear one complaint from Laserblast… I’LL INCINERATE YOU ALL!” 

The robots excitedly replied, “Yes, daddy!” and they all began crowding around Laserblast. He laughed, albeit a bit nervously. “Alright, settle down, settle down… We’ve got a bit of a long walk.” He turned to look at Boxman. “Hey, uh, Boxman. One last question. Have you let your… children… be in public very much?”

Boxman tapped a finger to his chin. “Not very much, no… They only just got their robo-teen upgrades a few days ago! Well, save for Jethro, Mikayla, and Ernesto, of course-”

“Lord Father, don’t lump me in with the kids!” A very huffy purple robot exclaimed- suppose that one was Ernesto. 

“Can it, Ernesto.” 

Laserblast sighed in relief. “Okay, good. The last thing I need is trying to convince Foxtail that we bring public enemies into school. I’m off, then. Later, Boxman. Come on, kids.” 

Laserblast waltzed into the corridor that was closest, only for the bots to remain where they were.

“...Mr. Laserblast, the exit’s this way,” the red robot said. 

“Right! I knew that.” 

Laserblast eventually made his way out of Boxmore, six robots in tow (and the purple one holding two of them). He knew the walk back wouldn’t be as pleasant as the walk here, now that he was on babysitting duty. The fact that he wasn’t in his civilian disguise didn’t help either.

“So! Since you six will be new students, I should get to know your names,” Laserblast said, turning his head back slightly to glance at them as he popped another sucker in his mouth. 

“I’m Darrell! Remember me?” The red robot said, hopping up and down excitedly. “You blew my head off!”

“Er… sorry about that.”

“It’s okay! There’s plenty of me to go around!” 

The orangey robot piped up next. “And his greater sister, that would be MEEE! SHANNON!” She finished her intro with a grin, swapping out her hand with a saw blade for dramatic effect. Laserblast gave her a look, and she rolled her eyes, putting it away. 

“And there’s me, one of Lad Boxman’s latest and greatest creations. Raymond! The player of the year!” He posed dramatically, and Laserblast could have sworn he smelt roses. 

“Baby brother,” Darrell and Shannon muttered. 

“I am Ernesto! Boxmore’s business-bot!” The purple one near the rear piped up. The two robots he was carrying signed off as well.

“I am Jethro.”

“Mikayla!”

“Er, and this is Jethro and Mikayla! We’re all very excited to be able to attend,” Ernesto continued, gesturing to the two others as they spoke. 

“Got it. There sure are a lot of you,” Laserblast said, as he continued on his way. 

“Daddy made a whole bunch of us after his first one left-” 

“DARRELL!” Darrell was cut off by the other robots shushing him. 

Laserblast decided it was best he just didn’t ask. “So Boxman wants you guys to go to school, huh?”

The bots nodded. “Coach Box-dad says we can learn from the heroic lessons and apply them to villainy,” Raymond started.

Shannon finished his thought. “And if we can’t apply the lessons to us, we can just surprise them with how much we know about their strategies! Ha ha ha haha!” 

That made him nervous. Although it wasn’t as if his P.O.I.N.T Prep lessons were confidential, some heroes might get a nasty surprise in the future. He decided not to worry about it too much. Once he had better and stronger powers, he could take all six of these robots in a fight any day. As he rounded the street corner, he turned once again to the bots, stopping them. 

“Alright, guys. We’re turning onto a really crowded street, and I’m kinda a big deal in the hero world. Stay close,” he instructed them, pulling the stragglers of the group closer. 

“You got it, Mr. Laserblast!” Darrell said with a salute. The rest of the bots followed suit, getting close to him in a tight pack comparable to a megafootball huddle. Well, he can’t say he didn’t ask for that. The group turned the corner, and immediately, he heard a shout.

“Oh my Cob, is that Laserblast?” 

Great. 

The street was soon hounded by adoring fans, POW cards getting shoved in his face, and general tomfoolery. Laserblast sighed, putting on a smile and just hoping nobody questioned the robot huddle with him. It felt like every time he pleased one fan, two more would join the crowd. 

“Uh… Mr. Laserblast, sir, I don’t mean to be rude, but are you sure you’ve got this under control?” Ernesto piped up, trying to pull Jethro away from a fan who claimed they wanted him autographed. 

“Positive, Ernesto,” Laserblast grunted, grabbing his helmet as a particularly rude fan went to grab for it. 

“You know, if you need a getaway vehicle, father made our parts compatible… Just an idea.” Ernesto was now whacking said fan with Jethro. 

“...That’ll do!” Laserblast replied. He grabbed Ernesto, and the bot, knowing what he needed to do, retracted his limbs and split himself in two, his parts rolling in place. 

“Oh, oh! Bike time!” Darrell clapped his hands together, and then wrenched his arms off. The other bots followed his example, rearranging and mixing their parts, as Laserblast could do nothing but watch in stunned silence.

The motor (which sounded a lot like Mikayla) revved, and he could hear a chorus of “Get on, Mr. Laserblast!” He nodded, hopping on the Shannon-coloured seat and hitting the gas pedal. He sped off, giving a final wave to the mob of fans. Laserblast barrelled down the streets, navigating the maze of the city nearest to the academy. As the formidable shadow of P.O.I.N.T Prep came into view, Laserblast pumped his fist in the air. He rolled up to the staff parking lot and got off quickly, kneeling to where he thought eye-level to the bike might be.

“...You guys okay? Can you get yourselves out of that?” 

“Yes, we’re fine,” Raymond said, approaching him from behind. 

Laserblast whipped around in shock. “Huh? But- But you guys-” He pointed to the bike in confusion.

“Oh! We told daddy you needed help with a bike, so he went ahead and sent some new usses so you wouldn’t be waiting for too long,” Darrell said with a grin. “Don’t worry, Mr. Laserblast! We’ve got a hivemind!” 

“...Huh. Well. I’ll, uh, I’ll keep that in mind. C’mon, then. I’ve got to introduce you to Foxtail and Greyman,” Laserblast continued, gesturing behind him to P.O.I.N.T HQ. 

“...Like, does everyone get a personal introduction?” Shannon asked. 

“You guys are a… special exception.”

Shannon and Raymond giggled and looked at eachother, one nudging the other. They whispered something about being special. Not that it mattered. 

Laserblast gestured for the bots to follow, and like ducklings in a line they all did. 

“Foxtail! Greyman! You two here?” He started, pushing open the door and looking for his teammates. 

“Laser! Where’ve you been? And what’s with all these… robots?” Greyman asked. He adjusted his hat and gave the robots a look. Mikayla growled. 

“They’re students I scouted! Didn’t I tell you about them?” 

His teammates shook their heads. 

“Ah, well, must have slipped my mind. This is Darrell, Shannon, Raymond, Ernesto, Mikayla, and Jethro. I think they can become great heroes under our guidance,” Laserblast said with a grin. He was surprised he managed to rattle off all those names. 

“There’s a lot of ‘em, Laser. What, you just steal a whole shipment? ‘Sides, I’m not sure ‘bout this. Don’t a lot of our enemies use robots?” Foxtail objected. 

“And a lot of our students use them, too. C’mon, Fox. Give ‘em a chance. Pleeeeease?” Although you couldn’t see under his helmet, anyone could tell he was trying to use puppy-dog eyes as he held up Jethro to her face. 

Foxtail. “Alright, alright. They better not cause any trouble, though. ‘N we’ve only got time for ONE induction ceremony tomorrow.” 

“Fine with us, right?” Laserblast put an arm around Darrell and Ernesto and gave as convincing a smile as he could.

“Mm. Now get these scamps to their rooms.”

Laserblast nodded. “C’mon, guys. Follow me. Dorm hall’s at the school.” And just as quickly as they had stepped in, the robots were out. Laserblast had to thank his teammates for their unfaltering trust in him. 

“A dorm? What’s that, Mr. Laserblast?” Darrell asked, hanging close to his side. 

“Well, it’s where you bots will be staying for the night,” Laserblast answered, still carrying Jethro. 

“The night? What’ll happen to daddy? Will we ever see him again? Guys, I didn’t agree to this!” Sannon grabbed her face, starting to panic, and like the siblings that they were, the rest of the robots followed suit. 

“GUYS. It’s not forever. Think of it as… A sleepover!” Laserblast awkwardly did jazz hands, grinning painfully. There was a pause that felt like an eternity, where the bots just stared at him. 

Oh, Cob. They’re gonna run back home to their dad and he was going to lose his chance. He should have known this would-!

“SLEEPOVER!” The bots roared, jumping up and down excitedly and running down the hall. They eventually walked back bashfully once they realized they still had no idea of their dorm assignments. 

Laserblast took the lead this time, showing them to a grand room. “Alright, it’s four to a dorm, so you guys decide who rooms with two other-”

“NOT IT!” Most of the bots cried, running into the room. The other two were Jethro, who he was holding, and Mikayla, who had been shoved out of the way.

Laserblast looked down at the two bots with him. He couldn’t leave them with two other people… He couldn’t leave ANY of the bots in a two-person dorm. What if they exposed who their daddy was? What if Laserblast got found out? He couldn’t let that happen. Although it meant these two would see him maskless- something nobody has seen in years, aside from Fox and Grey- 

He’d have to take that chance. How could they snitch, anyways? It’s not like they can talk.

“...Alright, you two. Looks like you’re dorming with me.” 

“I am Jethro!” Laserblast could have sworn that was a happier Jethro noise.

“Mikayla!” And those claws being sunk into his back was definitely a happy thing. 

He couldn’t help but smile. 

With the two bots in tow, Laserblast made his way back to his room. He locked the door behind him, and sighed. It was time. He gently clicked a disc on the side of his helmet, and it came off with ease. He placed it by his bedside table, and sat down on his bed.

“I am Jethro,” Jethro said, rolling onto the small pet bed Laserblast had set up for him. Mikayla, meanwhile, had other plans, landing right on Laserblast’s stomach.

“HOOGH! Mikayla!” He protested, trying to get the bot off him, but she had already begun kneading her claws on the blanket. Laserblast sighed in defeat, blowing some hair out of his face. He reached for his phone, and opened up the messaging app for the last thing he needed to do that night. 

Logged onto group chat: BOXMORE 

LB has joined the chat. 

ShannonDaBest: daddyyyyy there’s a strangerrrrr 

SherriffDarrell: stranger danger!! 

Raymond’sWay: LB? What is that, lead balloon?

LB: It’s Laserblast. Boxman added me to the chat so I could keep in touch with you guys.

LadBoxman: AND WITH ME.

LB: And with you, of course.

IAmJethro: i am jethro

Ernesto: Jethro says you have caps lock on, father. 

LadBoxman: WELL HOW DO I TURN IT OFF 

Ernesto: The arrow button on the keyboard. 

LadBoxman: thank you. ernesto

LB: Anyways. Get a good night’s rest, you guys. You’ve got your induction ceremony tomorrow. Foxtail plans on doing yours all at once, so if even one of you guys slacks, you’ll all get thrown out. Don’t forget your school uniforms. 

LB: jjhsdkhfdkfsdfksdfsa

SheriffDarrell: you got it, mr laserblast!

ShannonDaBest: what was that last part

LB: Sorry. Mikayla keeps batting my phone out of my hands.

LB: kjgdkjsgkhkj

Ernesto: Goodnight, Mikayla.

SherriffDarrell: nighty night!

ShannonDaBest: raymond needs his beauty sleep lolz

Raymond’sWay: Well it takes one to know one. 

LadBoxman: Goodnight children. And good luck

IAmJethro: i am jethro

Laserblast turned his phone off. 

Tomorrow was a big day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THE KIDS ARE HERE NOW :D i wanted to get this chapter up ASAP because it's the second part of this setup so it's pretty important! i hope yall are ready for laser and the robots bonding, this is my silent protest for not getting much ven-boxbot bonding lmao


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> class is in session for the boxbots- the only thing they need to do now is pass that entrance ceremony! can they do it?

“Darrell…”

“Ugh… Just five more minutes, daddy…”

“DARRELL!” 

“Five more minuuuuutes!”

Ernesto screamed. 

“OKAY! I’M UP! I’M UP!”

“Good,” Ernesto continued, handing Darrell a neatly-folded set of clothes. “Shannon and Raymond are already downstairs eating breakfast. So are Jethro and Mikayla. Come on! Hurry up!”

“What?! I slept through ALL my alarms?!” Darrell grabbed the clothes in a panic, running into their shared washroom, then running back out. 

“Your shirt’s on backwards.”

“NUTS!” 

After a while of confusion, Darrell and Ernesto made it to the dining hall, where Shannon waved them over. They were all wearing matching P.O.I.N.T Prep uniforms that had been modified to fit their strange proportions. Jethro and Mikayla even wore versions of the uniform! Albeit with heavy modifications. 

“Why’re you guys so worried about getting breakfast? We don’t even need to eat!” Darrell protested, sitting down. 

“Well, the amphitheatre doors were closed, so we decided we’d wait here,” Shannon replied.

“Oh, you know, mingling with our classmates-to-be, seeing who here could possibly be hotter than moi,” Raymond added, fanning himself with his claw. 

“I am Jethro,” Jethro added. 

“Oh, Jethro, there’s no need to be so nervous. You’ll do great,” Ernesto cooed, patting his little brother on the head. 

“I am Jethro…”

“I wouldn’t let that happen.”

Shannon and Raymond shared a look. Ernesto really was in touch with Jethro. 

It was only a matter of time until the bots were reunited with the protagonist of the story once more, as students flew into the amphitheater doors, clamoring with excitement. 

“Oh! Sister, that’s our cue,” Raymond said, pulling his sister up excitedly, as Darrell grabbed her arm as well. 

“Guys! Wait for us!” Ernesto scooped Jethro up, and Mikayla hopped onto Raymond’s shoulder as they all hurried in. There wasn’t much room for them, but they managed to squeeze onto a bench, the 6 of them still together. On a lower level sat Laserblast, along with his fellow discipline heads. Shannon called to him in a hushed whisper, and he turned around, giving them a wave. 

He popped a sucker into his mouth once he had turned back around, but Foxtail elbowed him sharply. “Sorry! Habit.” Laserblast chuckled, sticking the thing back into its wrapper. He gave Foxtail a thumbs-up for good luck as she headed to the stage. 

“Good morning, POINT Prep students! I am your dean of students and trainer of strength, Foxtail! Joinin’ me as usual, the incredible Dr. Greyman, discipline head of wisdom!” Foxtail announced, as Greyman gave a cheerful wave to the audience.

“Hello!” He shouted. “I just got back from a donut run!” 

“And our charmin’ head of charisma, you all know him, Laserblast!” Laserblast was pointed to next, and he clicked his tongue, giving a one-off to the audience. 

“Y’all may be wonderin’ why we brought you all here. Well, we’ve got a few new students!” Foxtail stopped, allowing a pause for hushed excitement. “Would y’all like to come up here for your… entrance exam?” 

Laserblast winced nervously, seeing the bots’ confidence vanish. “You guys got this,” he whispered as they passed him. They needed to get this- his whole operation was on the line here!

Foxtail smirked as she went to sit back down. “Laserblast? Would you like to introduce our new students?” 

“I’d love to, Foxtail. Students of P.O.I.N.T Prep! Say hello to Darrell! Shannon! Raymond! Ernesto! Mikayla! And last but not least… Jethro!” Laserblast said, hyping up the bots as best as he could. When he said each name, the bot took their respective cue to pose dramatically.

The hushed murmurs from the crowd eventually grew into terrified yelling.

“What? Is our presence THAT terrifyingly amazing?” Raymond said, putting his hands on his hips crossly. 

“Yeah, it’s like-“ Shannon was interrupted by a student in the audience screaming “LOOK OUT!” 

Shannon was about to comment on how rude the audience was being when the group was forced to jump in half thanks to a gigantic red laser. 

“You’re gonna have to try a bit harder than that, now. Come on!” The robots turned around in shock only to see a gigantic, grinning head of their benefactor- Laserblast.

“Whichever head y’all defeat is your chosen discipline. I trust you’ll be able to do it?” Foxtail said, drumming her fingers on the desk with a mischievous smirk. 

Shannon and Raymond gave each other a nod. 

“I hope you’re ready to finish this with style, sister,” Raymond proclaimed as he lifted her up, figure-skating style. 

“When do I ever NOT finish something with style, Ray?”

“...I could name a few times.” 

“Just shut up and throw me.” 

Raymond obliged. As he threw Shannon, she morphed into a net, giggling. “How’s this for TRYING?” The giant Shannon net didn’t cover Laserblast’s head entirely, but it covered what was important- his helmet. 

“H-Hey! Easy with the goods!” His head protested, as Raymond charged up a finishing blow. 

With a cloud of rose petals flying all around the arena, Raymond blew his cannon smoke away as Shannon landed beside him.

“Boom boom,” She started.

“Shake the room,” he finished. 

They bumped hips and sauntered off stage, where Laserblast was eagerly waiting- trying to ignore the fact that he was the one who fell first. “Hey, I knew you could do it! Looks like you two are with me in charisma.”

Raymond smirked. “Was there ever any doubt?” 

Unfortunately for the rest of the bots, the battle was still raging on. 

“MR. LASERBLAST?” Darrell shouted, ducking under Foxtail’s giant head as she tried to tear his head off. “WHY ARE YOU TRYING TO KILL US?” 

“All part of the test, kiddo!” Laserblast shouted, cupping his hands over his mouth. “If I wasn’t your style then maybe it’s time to pick someone else!” 

Darrell’s eye lit up. “Ohhh… I think I got it!” He grinned, transforming his arm into an arm cannon. He pointed it at Foxtail’s head, who huffed incredulously.

“What is that, a kid’s toy?” She said.

“No,” Darrell replied. “Just part of the COMBO!” He shot off the blast, stunning Foxtail’s head and wounding her considerably. As she shook off the damage, a pair of claws sliced right through her. 

“Mikayla!” Mikayla yelled confidently- her war cry. She landed on Darrell’s shoulder, and they high-fived as Foxtail beckoned them off the stage. 

“There you have it! You two belong with me- in the strength discipline!” The real Foxtail flexed her muscles, and Darrell followed suit, though he didn’t have much muscle to flex. Mikayla purred happily in agreement. 

That left Ernesto and Jethro with Greyman’s head. 

“If you have 5 apples, and Jerry takes 4, then what is the volume of a cylinder?” Greyman’s head asked, looming over them. 

“Please! I’m just a tax man! I can’t do that!” Ernesto sobbed.

“I am Jethro,” Jethro said, bumping into Ernesto’s leg repeatedly. 

“Not now, Jethro, can’t you see I’m busy being terrorized?” Ernesto protested, putting his baby brother aside. 

“I am Jethro.”

“What? You say you have an idea?”

“I am Jethro!”

“The idea is to give up?! Don’t be ridiculous.”

“I am Jethro.”

“YES WE CAN, JETHRO. WATCH THIS. WE CAN DO IT!” Ernesto yelled, picking up Jethro. “BANZAIIIIIIIII!”

And just like that, Jethro was launched at Greyman’s head. 

Ernesto covered his eyes, and waited.

“...Well, that didn’t do much, but I can see the wisdom it took to be so in touch with each other! So I’m just gonna explode for you. YOU’RE WELCOME!” Greyman’s head said with a grin, promptly exploding just like he promised. 

The crowd roared with applause, as Greyman hopped up on his seat, cheering the loudest. “Excellent work! I’m proud to call you guys wisdom students!”

“I am Jethro.”

Ernesto adjusted his hat. “Oh! Jethro wants to know if you have any curriculum involving Kierkegaard.” 

Greyman shrugged. “Guess we’ll have to see!” 

Foxtail cleared her throat. “Now that that’s over, students, you all know you’ve got a BIG day of learning ahead of you, so let’s mosey on over to class. Capiche?” 

The students all filed out slowly but surely, leaving just the discipline heads and the bots.

“Alright, guys. Let’s split. Have a good first day,” Laserblast said, nodding to the other bots. “Shannon? Raymond? Just follow my lead.” He headed out first, and the two robots excitedly followed him. 

“Darrell. Mikayla. Let’s get a move on.” Foxtail headed out soon after, and Greyman giggled, levitating himself out the door. The bots rushed after them. 

Meanwhile, in the hall, Laserblast popped the forgotten sucker in his mouth, satisfied with his work. 

“So? You really liked it?” Shannon said, walking quicker than usual to keep up with Laserblast, who knew the hallways like the back of his own hand- or the inside of his own helmet, he supposed. 

“‘Course I liked it! You two have got some refreshing enthusiasm. Haven’t seen a ceremony that exciting in a while,” he said. He wasn’t lying. Those ceremonies were always such a snooze. And they had impressed him! Even if they were undercover evil robo-teens. 

“Refreshing!” Raymond gasped, starstruck.

“Alright, you two. Here’s your homeroom. Get a move on,” Laserblast grunted, walking in first. 

The two bots rushed to their seats, where the students of the class immediately started gossiping and talking to the new students.

“Usually we only get new students in the beginning of the semester!”

“Is it true that THE Laserblast scouted you guys?”

“I’ve never met a robot before! Do you guys drink oil?” 

“Everyone, that’s enough. You can talk to them later. As I’m sure you all know, this is Raymond and Shannon. They’re new. And they’re just in time for my next lesson-“ He points to the word ‘ESCAPES’ written on the board. 

“We’ve been talking about entrances for so long… but what about our exits?” Laserblast grinned, rolling his sucker back and forth in his mouth. 

A student raised their hand. “Excuse me, Mr. Laserblast, but didn’t we already focus on dramatic exits?”

“Good eye,” Laserblast said with a laugh. “That’s because we’re not just leaving- We’re escaping.” He turned to the board and started to draw a scene. The hero was, of course, himself- That wasn’t a vanity thing. If he used any heroes in the class as an example, a war would break out over the ridiculous concept of ‘favourite students’. So he stuck with himself. He drew rope around his midsection, and a frowny face underneath his helmet. Next, he drew a cackling villain underneath.

Shannon elbowed Raymond. “Ray! That’s totally daddy, right?” She whispered.

“Absolutely,” he replied. They both giggled. 

“Oh, students, will you look at that? I’ve gone and gotten myself captured! What do you say we do?” He turned back around to face the class, as he revealed his diorama of a lair. 

A nerdy-looking student raised her hand. “Scope the surroundings. If the door is positioned on the far side of the room, and you the middle, then-“ 

“Nice try,” Laserblast said, putting a hand up to stop her. “But this is  _ charisma  _ class, remember? We’re focusing on this guy. The villain.” He circled the drawing, who was definitely of Lad Boxman. When did that happen? 

Another hand shot up.

“Yes! Raymond!” 

“That’s simple. You don’t! No good escape could be done without a little posing, and you’re all tied up,” Raymond said confidently.

“Mmmm, not quite. Anyone want to help him out?” Laserblast offered, looking around at his pupils.

A shy-looking student finally put up his hand. “Well… You’d probably want to distract the villain.” 

“That’s RIGHT! And how do you propose we do that?” Laserblast leaned forward, waiting for him to continue.

“Well… Lotsa villains like to monologue evilly, right? They like to tell you their plan… So get ‘em to do that.” 

Laserblast nodded. “Exactly. One of the key weaknesses of villains? Their own ego. Exploit that. Use it to your advantage. They won’t just spit out their plan, either… You gotta  _ coax _ it out of ‘em.” 

The class let out a collective ‘ _ oooooh _ ’ and Raymond shook his sister. “Write that down, write that down! Coach could use it!” 

“Yeah, yeah, I got it!” Shannon retorted furiously, scribbling as fast as her robotic arms could allow her. 

Raymond and Shannon continued their note-taking, and by the end of the class, they both had approximately one page chock-full of notes. Half of Raymond’s page was full of doodles of beautiful roses and sport balls, and half of Shannon’s was of pictures of herself. 

It was good enough. 

They got out of class as the bell rang, cackling and talking amongst themselves. 

Shannon felt a buzz in her pocket, and pulled out her phone. 

Logged onto group chat: BOXMORE

SheriffDarrell: hey!! wat r u guys doin for lunch!

ShannonDaBest: uhm nothing you dork, we don’t need to eat remember 

Raymond’sWay: Well, I like a good rose or two. Anyone know if P.O.I.N.T Prep has a garden? 

LB: No.

Raymond’sWay: No?

LB: No eating the roses. Foxtail worked very hard on growing those.

Ernesto: That was Foxtail?

SheriffDarrell: didnt see her as a rose girl 

Raymond’sWay: Everyone can be a rose girl, Darrell.

ShannonDaBest: but can everyone pull it off?

Mikayla: shskkejakdkakd

IAmJethro: i am jethro 

LB: Huh?

Ernesto: Jethro says that Mikayla says that you’re a party pooper.

Ernesto: Their words, not mine!

SheriffDarrell: GUYS!! i just found a skee ball and pizza place near the school 

ShannonDaBest: no WAY. 

SheriffDarrell: yes. way.

Raymond’sWay: Coach hasn’t let me do skee ball in ages!

Ernesto: Because last time, he had to pay for all the damages you did.

Raymond’sWay: There couldn’t have been that many damages.

Ernesto: IT WAS A LOT OF DAMAGES.

LadBoxman: NO SKEE BALL

ShannonDaBest: but daddyyyyyy

LadBoxman: dont five me that young lady.

LadBoxman: *give

SheriffDarrell: buuuut daddyyyyy

LadBoxman: NO BUTS

LB: What if they had a chaperone?

Raymond’sWay: Don’t be ridiculous, Mr. Laserblast. Father already said no. 

LB: I could take you guys. My lunch is free. 

SheriffDarrell: what??

LadBoxman: WHAT??

LB: Trust me. It’ll be fine. Boxman, if you want me to teach your kids, then I’m going to have to get to know them. Like it or not.

LB: Besides! It’ll be fun. 

LadBoxman: Fine.

LadBoxman: But if I get one single bill in my mailbox. So help me Cob. 

LB: I’m a hero, Boxman. I protect things. I’ll protect your budget. 

LB: Kids? Meet me at the front gates. Boxman?

LB: See you at the lab.

  
  


Shannon and Raymond looked at each other excitedly, before bumping chests and running off to lunch.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i had like. so much fun writing the entrance ceremony?? the giant head idea was just so bizarre that i had so much fun. also ernesto and jethro as a duo is so underrated


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> more boxbot shenanigans! also, laserblast makes it through his first school day with the kids!

The majestic crown jewel of game and dining. Peeza and Skeeza. Laserblast still had no idea how they had earned the right to be anywhere NEAR P.O.I.N.T Prep, but maybe it was older than the school. Family business of some kind.

Well, at least the bots were having fun. 

Darrell, Shannon and Raymond were locked in a fierce skee-battle, while Ernesto was trying to hack a claw machine with Mikayla.

“I am Jethro,” Jethro said, a slice of pizza resting on his face. To be honest, Laser still wasn’t sure whether the bot was talking to him or not most of the time. 

“Enjoying lunch, buddy?” 

“I am Jethro.” 

He chuckled. “Yeah. Me too.” Laserblast’s focus turned back over to the robotic siblings, only to find that they were focused on him.

“Mr. Laserblast, tell this CHEATER to play fair!” Darrell pointed at Raymond angrily. 

“It’s not CHEATING, brother. It’s outsmarting the rules. They might as well have put me in wisdom for these skills!” Raymond said, striking a pose.

“They didn’t put you in wisdom because you’re a MEGA-NERD!” Shannon yelled, exchanging her hand for a saw blade.

“DARRELL! SHANNON! Knock it off!” Laserblast said sternly. He had dealt with inter-student disputes dozens of times. Piece of cake! “If you two can’t play fair, then you’ll just have to play another game.”

“But Mr. Laserblaaaast… Raymond’s just too competitive! He ruins all our games!” Darrel pleaded, gesturing to his pouty baby brother. 

“Then let’s do a game where we can all work together. How about… ah!” Laserblast pointed to an arcade machine. “Frogger. My old favourite.” 

“...How exactly are we gonna play a single-player game together?” Shannon said, looking at Laserblast as if he just turned purple. 

“I’ll do the playing. You guys help me out with directions,” he said, standing up and cracking his knuckles.

He may be a weak link in P.O.I.N.T, but Cob darn, if he wasn’t smart! Solving the problem AND getting to play Frogger? Laserblast, you mad genius. 

“So. The goal is to get this little frog guy across the street-“

“Where’s he going?” Darrell interrupted.

“What? Well, we don’t really know-“

“Oh, oh! Can we say he’s going to destroy some heroes?” Shannon continued. 

“Guys. You remember I’m a-“

“The frog of destruction!” Raymond trumpeted, and all three of them cheered.

Laserblast sighed. “Sure. Fine. So we need to help the frog destroy some heroes. He can’t fall in the water, though-“

“I thought frogs could swim!” Darrell scratched his brain dome in confusion.

“Well, this one can’t. That’s what makes him so evil. Anyways. We can’t let the trucks hit us, we can’t reach the water. Ready?”

“Ready!” The bots said eagerly. 

“Okay. Here we go.” Laserblast pressed the button once, and the tiny frog hopped forward. 

“What are you waiting for? Keep going!” Shannon shouted, and Laserblast obliged. After a few leaps in succession, the frog was hit by a truck. “Whaaat? I thought we could outspeed them…”

“Psh. That’s what we get for trusting you, SISTER,” Raymond scoffed. “Just follow my lead. One, and two, and three, and four,” he instructed, as Laserblast pushed the button in the rhythmic beat the bot instructed him to.

He didn’t have much luck either. 

“WHAT?” Raymond scoffed. “This game is CLEARLY rigged.” 

“Like I told you… Gotta work together,” Laserblast replied with a chuckle. “Now. I’ll start us off.” He pushed the button in succession a few times, getting across the first stretch. The bots watched intently, before looking at each other. 

“Uh… Now!” Darrell yelled, prodding a finger at the screen. Shannon egged him on, as Laser made his way across the next section. He was too busy concentrating to see their faces, but judging by their excited clamoring, the bots were very entertained. 

After a few more rallies, the group was making rapid progress, and had even gone up a few levels. Laserblast wiped some sweat from his brow, and continued pressing the button as the alternating voices told him to. 

“WAIT-!!” All three of them shouted, but Laserblast’s finger slipped, and with a press of a button, their game was over. 

The four of them stared at the blinking game over screen silently. 

“...Does this mean we’re gonna be incinerated?” Darrell piped up at last. 

“What? No! Of course not!” Laserblast turned to face the robots, who were shrinking away from him. Whether it was out of embarrassment or out of fear, he honestly couldn’t tell. “It’s just a game, you guys. It’s okay. Look how far we got, too!”

“But daddy says that’s what he’d do if we failed him…” Shannon replied, looking away. 

“Well, I’m not your daddy, alright? I’m your teacher. And teachers don’t incinerate people.” Laserblast paused. This was oddly serious, even for him. He fixed his face up into a smirk. “...Unless you guys are late to class.” 

Raymond stifled a chuckle, and the rest of the bots began to laugh as well. 

“Mr. Laserblast! Are you done over there yet? There’s a lady here with the bill,” Ernesto, holding handfuls of claw machine prizes, shifted side to side worriedly as a lady adjusted her visor, tapping her foot. 

“Oh! Coming, Ernesto,” Laserblast replied, pushing past the bots to talk to the lady. After she was satisfied, she walked off, leaving the group to gather their bearings. Laserblast looked over at Ernesto’s heaping pile of stuff. “... All P.O.I.N.T stuff, huh?” He grabbed one of the kitschy prizes from him, studying it- it was a plushie of himself! They had made his visor look so catty… It was still strange to see his face plastered everywhere. 

“I’m pretty good at the claw machine, you have to admit!” Ernesto bragged, putting his hands on his hips. “-Oh, and Mikayla helped too, of course.”

“Yeah. Not bad. The real question is what we do with all this stuff, though. I mean, I don’t really have a use for it,” Laserblast said with a shrug. “Divide it amongst yourselves, for all I care. Better hurry, though-” he stopped to look at his watch. “We’ve got to get back to school soon.” 

Big mistake. 

The restaurant was filled with arguing and metal clanging together, but just like that, it was over, with every robot seemingly satisfied. 

What a weird group. 

The rest of the day flew by before Laserblast’s eyes, and for most of the afternoon classes, he had no clue what was even coming out of his mouth. It was hard to concentrate when he was fantasizing about getting back to Boxmore. It had been a long day of glorified babysitting, and he couldn’t wait to reap his reward. 

The bell ringing was the sweetest sound he had heard all day. Laserblast was practically first out the door, and he rushed just outside of the school building before stopping short when he realized something important.

He still didn’t have a car. 

Laserblast sighed loudly, pulling out his phone.

Logged onto group chat: BOXMORE

LB: Hey, Boxman…

LB: Think I could catch a ride to Boxmore? 

LadBoxman: WHAT

LadBoxman: YOU DON’T HAVE A CAR???

LB: Sold it when I joined P.O.I.N.T. We all chipped in to buy the Powitzer. 

LadBoxman: just BUY a NEW ONE with HERO MONEY

LB: I can’t just buy a car! Do you have any idea how complicated the process is?!

LadBoxman: No

LB: Thank you for your honesty.

LadBoxman: OK I’ll pick you up but JUST FOR TODAY!! Meet at the alley near that old wrestling ring 

LadBoxman: Hope you can fit under desks 

LB: ...Explain?

Before Laserblast could check to see if Boxman had elaborated on his bizarre message, his ears were filled with the sound of metallic yelling. 

There were the bots. 

“Oh, Mr. Laserblast! Did you hear? We’re gonna get picked up by DADDY!” Darrell shouted excitedly, hopping up and down as he tugged on Laserblast’s sleeve.

“Yes, Darrell, I know. I’m the one who asked him,” Laserblast replied quietly. He waved his hand up and down once or twice, trying to get Darrell to quiet down. “We better get going. Best not to keep your father waiting.” 

“Oh, no, don’t worry about it, Mr. Laserblast! We can just reboot to get back home!” Shannon said cheerily. 

“No, no, there’s no need for that-”

Too late. 

Laserblast sighed. He was going to have to get used to that sooner or later. He put his hands in his pockets and started to head towards the meeting spot. 

It was as dingy as an alleyway could get, alright, but it was the only surefire way to make sure nobody walked in on the famous hero hitching a ride from the novice villain. Laserblast shoved some cobwebs out of his face as he headed further in. It was disgusting. 

It was hard enough to see with his helmet on, but the darkness wasn’t inviting. Still, the one sense that hadn’t betrayed him was his touch- as he felt himself bump into Lad Boxman unceremoniously. 

“Honestly. I never expected for you heroes to be such freeloaders!” Boxman piped up, seemingly unfazed that Laserblast had just bonked him. 

“Yeah… I’m sorry, Boxman. It won’t happen again. I’ll get a car as soon as I can,” Laserblast replied bashfully. It felt bad to have the little man yelling at him… Even if he was a villain, he WAS helping him. 

“GOOD. It’s not cheap to refuel this thing, you know! Now get under.” 

“...Under.” Laserblast still didn’t get it. 

“Yes. Under the desk. Un-duhr. I don’t know how much more clear I can make this.” 

Eventually, Laserblast slowly slid underneath the desk, and found two pieces of wood below and next to him. A guest compartment! That was clever, actually. He could hear Boxman tilt a lever or two, and with a spectacular burst of flame, the desk shot up out of the alleyway and into the sky. Once the desk stopped its ascent, buildings whipped past Laserblast’s limited view. He could have felt the wind in his hair, if it wasn’t tightly tucked in his helmet. 

Boxman’s hair was unfortunately not as lucky. It was a flurry of mint that he constantly had to adjust every two seconds. “Stupid wind.” He looked down at Laserblast with a coy smirk. “Like the view? Villains ride in STYLE. You should try it sometime!”

“What, being a villain?” Laserblast asked with a chuckle, trying to hide the slight blush present on his face.

“You’d be surprised,” Boxman laughed. “...But don’t actually do it. I need someone to unleash my evil creations on!” 

Creations was certainly a word for it. Laserblast couldn’t remember how many times P.O.I.N.T’s break room had been booby trapped with Junkfish. Not to mention that other time, with the cake… 

“Oh! We’re here!” Boxman said happily, chuckling evilly as he brought his desk down for a surprisingly smooth landing. “Alright, you can come out now.” 

Laserblast did as he was told, rolling out of the guest compartment. He got up properly, dusting dirt off his pants. “Well. We’re here indeed. Lead the way.” 

Boxman gladly did so, marching to the door. He didn’t hold it open, so Laserblast had to prop it up himself when he stepped inside. Boxmore looked about the same as it was when he had last been- very pinkish. The only thing that changed was which robot was being surplus-produced on the large assembly lines. 

“So! Where’s the lab space, Boxman?” Laserblast quickly matched Boxman’s pace, as the lad gave him a knowing smile.

“Someone’s excited.”

“I’ve been studying this for quite a while. I think there could be some really good bio-research to be done here, and-”

Boxman’s face twisted. “Eugh. Organic sciences?” 

“Well, yeah. That’s what I majored in.”

“You… Majored in organic sciences?” Boxman looked surprised, and Laserblast immediately knew because he didn’t seem ‘the type’. 

“Yeah. Got my degree in bioengineering at Neo Riot U,” Laserblast answered his silent question. 

“Really! Well, machines are still FAR more reliable, if you ask me,” Boxman said with a wave of his hand. The two of them stopped in front of a door. “Here we go. You’re lucky I have so much room here at Boxmore! Now, watch carefully. I’ve password-protected the lab so that no… unexpected guests come barging in,” Boxman explained, making sure Laserblast watched him input the four-digit code. The lab door slid open, and Laserblast couldn’t help but emit a gasp.

It was a stunningly clean space, bigger than even P.O.I.N.T Prep’s lab- though, of course, that one was cluttered with student desks and power models. There was a small container of glorbs to the left, and a perfect set of tools to the right. 

“Really, you should have told me you were a bio guy! I could have gotten more materials over at the villain stop n’ shop-”

“No… It’s perfect,” Laserblast said, grabbing a lab coat off the hook and starting to head inside. He was pulled back by a claw.

“Er- Laserblast! Aren’t you going to put your…?” Boxman made a motion of taking a helmet off, glancing at the goggles that hung near the lab coats. 

Laserblast stopped, grabbing onto his helmet protectively. “No!” Absolutely not. Out of the question. Another person, another real live person, not a robo-kid or a… Whatever Mikayla was… being able to see the real him? It was terrifying. The protective mystery of his visor would no longer be there… Boxman would be able to see every single shuddering inch and twitch of insecurity that his eyes gave away. 

He wouldn’t do it.

Not in a million years. 

Boxman shrunk back slightly, but didn’t let it bother him. “Fine by me. I’ll leave you to it now. Have fun… P.O.I.N.T Preppie.” 

The door closed, and Laserblast turned back to his station. 

It was time to get to work. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> can i just say??? thank you guys so much for all your support on this silly little fanfic! im by no means a great writer so all your support really does mean a lot to me, thank you!!! i hope you enjoy!


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Laserblast gets to work in the lab, but villains don't know what 'minding their business' means.

Lad Boxman may have given him a door, but he didn’t actually expect Laserblast to close it in his face.

He also didn’t expect he would be quite this curious about what he was even doing there. 

Boxman stood, staring at the door like an idiot. He didn’t know what he was expecting. For it to open? Ha. Fat chance. He could see flashes of light under there, which, to any scientist or idiot, clearly meant Laserblast was hard at work. 

Pah. What did he care? Laserblast was a hero, and Boxman a villain. They shouldn’t be sharing a coffee, they should be avoiding each other in this strange trade deal as much as he could. Why,-

“DADDY!”

Oh, boy. The children had figured out he’s home. Boxman got tackled by 5 heavy metal bodies (and lightly bumped in the leg by one), and he tried his hardest not to topple over from the weight.

“ _ Children,”  _ he began sternly. “What did daddy say about hugging?” 

The robots all inched off him bashfully. 

“But daddy, we were away the whole day… We missed you,” Darrell explained. 

“Forget about that. How was it? You didn’t do anything stupid, did you?”

The group shook their heads. 

“Good. And what did you learn?”

“Here you are, coach father,” Raymond said confidently, passing up the notes he and Shannon had taken. Ernesto slipped a paper or two overtop, and Darrell slammed a few more down. 

Boxman chuckled deviously, leafing through the papers. “Excellent… My genius plan is unfolding just as I expected! It really was a good idea to have children, after all-” 

He stopped, holding up one of the sheets and pointing at a margin doodle. “Darrell. What is this.”

“...You and Mr. Laserblast as cowboys?” 

“DARRELL!” Boxman shouted, reprimanding him. He wasn’t sure for what, really, all of the robots had done equally obscene doodles on their pages, but for some reason, seeing him and Laserblast holding hands, in matching cowboy hats… 

No. Nope! The cowboy hats weren’t even cool. 

“...Hey, where IS Mr. Laserblast, anyways?” Shannon asked, hands folded on her hips. “Didn’t he make the whole lab space deal with you?” 

“He’s here! He’s just very busy in his lab, and he’s  _ not  _ to be disturbed,” Boxman said, putting his hands on his hips crossly as the children all looked away innocently. 

“Of course, daddy,” Shannon replied. 

“Wouldn’t dream of it, coach,” Raymond chimed in. 

“Absolutely not!” Darrell finished. 

The three of them sped off. Boxman sighed, rubbing his temples. “What am I going to do with those three…” 

In the meantime, three bots crash-landed against a lab door. 

“Ow! What’s the big deal? Daddy never locks his doors!” Darrell complained, rubbing his brain dome to check for cracks. 

“Yeah. How else are we supposed to crash-land and tell him we failed?” Shannon nodded in agreement. 

Raymond leaned closer, tapping the door once or twice. “Alright, guys. Stand back.”

Darrell and Shannon did so- not before rolling their eyes. Raymond backed up, brushing his feet against the ground once or twice, and then went running, smashing his side against the door in perfect football form. The only thing that did was cause a loud CLUNK. 

A disgruntled “BOXMAAAAN!” came from the other side of the door, but Raymond ignored it. “Looks like there’s a keypad of some kind, after all… It must be password protected.” 

“Password?!” Darrell groaned. “Aw, now we’ll never be able to hang out with Mr. Laserblast…” 

“Psh. It’s just a silly password. Move! I bet I can guess it,” Shannon said, pushing her brother out of the way. She pressed a combination of four numbers on the keypad, and it simply beeped, turning red for a second. Shannon grunted, trying again. Still nothing. One more time. The keypad made a loud blaring noise, and an electric shock coursed through Shannon, sending her flying across the room. 

“Wow. Father’s serious,” Raymond commented, ignoring the yells of protest from his sister. 

“Yeah… If we keep at it like this, our circuits’ll get fried for sure!” 

Raymond nodded. “Then we need to find that password. Split up and look for it!” 

With a blast, they were off. 

Lad Boxman was hunched over a table, alone. As usual. He didn’t know why he expected Laserblast to be alongside him, of course, but-

“Daddy?”

Boxman looked up, only to frown, seeing his son wearing a fedora, a trench coat, and glasses (Darrell, you only have one eye). “...Make it quick, Darrell.” 

“I’m playing interview with Shannon! I’m gonna interview you for a scoop, okay?” Darrell flipped open a notepad, adjusting his glasses. “Okay, so my first question is, if you had to think of AAANY four numbers, which would they be?”

“Darrell.”

“Oh, and what are your four favourite numbers?”

“DARRELL.”

“Or what numbers remind you of Mr. Laserblast-”

“DARRELL, YOU AREN’T ALLOWED IN THE LAB!” 

Boxman huffed, hair falling in his face. His robot son hid his face in his notepad. “Darrell… Your siblings aren’t  _ also  _ trying to get in the lab, are they…?” 

“...No?” 

Boxman groaned. “Alright. Come on, Darrell. We’re going to stop your siblings from harassing the hero.”

“Aww.” 

Boxman led the way. “So. Any ideas what their plans could be?”

Darrell shook his head. “All they said was that Shannon’s was better than mine and that Raymond’s was a slam dunk.”

“Right. So literally no clues, then.” 

Boxman came to a halt as he heard a piercing scream run through Boxmore. 

“HEEEEELP! HELP MEEEEEEE!” 

Darrell nervously tapped his fingers together. “Oh, no! Daddy, that sounds like Shannon! What if she’s hurt?” He rushed ahead of Boxman, who grunted, keeping his pace. 

The two of them made their way through the maze of doors and hallways, tracking the wailing that still hadn’t stopped. Boxman wasn’t all too pleased at all the ruckus, and he was sure Laserblast wouldn’t be thrilled either. He had made Shannon to be rather durable, as all his robots were, so he knew she couldn’t be in any REAL danger. 

Finally, Boxman and Darrell found the source of Shannon’s screaming. She was wearing a faux pink wig, and her face was smeared with lipstick. More importantly, she was tied to a conveyor belt and heading towards a buzzsaw. 

“SHANNON!” Darrell squealed, running up to the conveyor belt and tugging at her arm. 

“Darrell! Get OUT! You’re gonna ruin my plan!” Shannon yelled. She shoved his arm off her. “OH, WOE IS ME! I’M REALLY STUCK, YOU GUYS! IF ONLY THERE WAS A  _ BIG, STRONG HERO  _ TO COME RESCUE MEEE!” 

“Young lady,” Boxman said, arms crossed. “Are you trying to lure Laserblast out of his lab.” 

“Sorry, daddy, but you’re too late to stop me! He’ll come running!” 

“...Shannon, please don’t tell me you think heroes have some kind of mandatory helping gene.” 

“Do they not?” 

“Ugh.  _ No,  _ Shannon. Most heroes just help because they’re  _ insufferable!  _ With their  _ frieeeendship,  _ and their  _ good deeds…”  _ He was about to throw in a small ‘no offense’ to Laserblast, but he remembered that Laserblast being away was the entire reason he was in this mess. 

“...So does this mean I have to get off the conveyor now?”

“ _ Yes.”  _

She sighed, shapeshifting herself flat and sliding underneath the ropes. She rolled off the conveyor belt and came back up beside Darrell. 

Boxman looked at his two children, both decorated in gaudy costumes. He wasn’t sure if he should be ashamed their plans were so lame, or relieved they didn’t actually work. 

“Now, you two are going to help me find-”

Raymond fell from the vent at just that moment. 

“...Hello, father.”

Boxman covered his face for a moment, as he could do nothing but sigh. 

“Raymond.”

Raymond sighed. He got the gist immediately. His expert plan had been foiled, along with his siblings. 

“Now, you all are going to come back with me, where we WON’T be bothering Laserblast!” Boxman yelled. Who knew taking care of robo-teens could be so exhausting? He marched off, and his kids followed in a sad parade line. Along the way, they passed Laserblast’s elusive lab, and each one of them stopped to stare wistfully. 

Boxman had always said that they don’t associate with heroes, and even today he had cursed out their friendship, but if heroes were so unbearable, why was one freely allowed in Boxmore? Why was Laserblast so cool?

“ _ Children _ ,” Boxman growled, turning back around. He knew they’d stop here, but not quite for this long. 

However, what Boxman didn’t expect was for the door to open. Some steam pooled out of the lab door, and a very happy-looking Laserblast poked his head out of the doorway. 

“Hey, Boxman! Check this out!” He said, holding up what looked to be a glorb, slightly tinted blue. “Now, if I’ve got my calculations correct, this glorb should give off an explosive power of about-!!” 

A noise like a dying whoopee cushion came out of the glorb, and all it did was deflate sadly in Laserblast’s hands. 

“I… Spent hours on this…” Laserblast said quietly, the words getting caught in his throat. His hands trembled, and he held his failed creation close to his chest. 

Boxman grabbed his shoulder, tugging at his lab coat. “Hey, hey! You win some, you lose some, right?” 

Laserblast shoved him off. “No. This whole idea was stupid. I should have known I wasn’t-!” He stopped himself, covering his mouth. His head did not move, but his eyes did under the helmet. “...I’m sorry to have wasted your time like this, Boxman. I’ll be on my way.”

Boxman stood in front of him resiliently. “And you say you have a bioengineering degree.” 

“...What?”

“What kind of self-respecting scientist gives up only after one failiure? Not any scientist I know, that’s who!” 

Laserblast swore under his breath. Boxman… He wasn’t making this any easier. He already felt worthless after his failure, and now this? “What, are you saying I’m not a scientist?”

Boxman nodded. “If you walk away right here, right now, you never were one.” 

“Is that some kind of THREAT?” 

“It’s a pep-talk!” Boxman crossed his arms and grinned smugly. “Villain-style.” 

“You see, unlike you heroes, we villains know how to get the job done! And that means no sparing feelings! One of the first things we learn in the business- failiure’s part of the job!” 

“I’m not a villain, Boxman,” Laserblast said, leaning forward to tower over him. 

“My lab, my life advice, hero!” Boxman laughed, but he quieted down after a while. “I’m being serious, though. Behind every brilliant plan is at least a hundred failiures. Remember that one time I attacked you all during Greyman’s birthday?”

Laserblast nodded, a smile forming on his face as he recalled the events. “Yeah. Foxtail complained that her cake money had gone to waste but I think battling those junkfish was the highlight of my day.” 

“You… Liked them?” Boxman’s chest puffed up slightly.

“Yeah! I mean, no, I didn’t, not in the hero way, but I still have one in my trophy room.”

“HA! I always knew you P.O.I.N.T pushovers admired my work! But that aside. Do you know how many times it took me to perfect that plan? Countless junkfish short-circuited, got stuck on cake batter, thought I was their target… It was a miserable time. But you know what? There is NOTHING that could stop me from DESTROYING you heroes!” Boxman proclaimed, sticking his hand up in the air.

Despite the monologue so clearly being laced with villainous intent, Laserblast couldn’t help but find it inspiring. He could see the point Boxman was trying to make, and for a villain like him, it made sense- in that industry you HAD to hold a ‘never give up’ mentality close to your heart, considering no matter how powerful you were, there was always a more powerful hero right around the bend. 

“...Thanks, Boxman.”

“Tell you what. Why don’t you stay for dinner? Then we can give it another go, together.” 

“Together?! No. Out of the question!” Laserblast fired back, as Boxman shushed him.

“You’re talking to a villain, remember? Literally the last person to judge whatever it is you’re doing.”

Laserblast stepped back, exhaling quietly. On one hand, Boxman knowing more could be problematic… But on another hand, he was far more skilled in the lab- and with glorbs- than Laser himself was. He could be a big help. And maybe they could even share some tips with each other. 

Besides, it didn’t look like Boxman was letting up anytime soon. 

“Mmmmmmm… _.Fiiiiine. _ ” 

“GREAT!” Boxman yelled, zipping into the kitchen. Laserblast had never seen him move so fast before. He shook his head, and moved into the dining room.

The rest of the bots, of course, had made it to the table before him. They knew the layout far better- He even had to stop an Ernesto along the way to ask for help. How that wounded his pride. They had already begun eating, though to call the stuff on their plate ‘food’ was an exaggeration. 

“...Nuts and bolts?” Laserblast questioned as he sat down.

“Yeah. You don’t think we get substance from your human food, do you?” Shannon replied.

“Chew with your mouth closed, Shannon,” Ernesto interrupted.

She spat a nut at him. 

Laserblast tried to hide his smirk. “...Anyways, is Boxman in the kitchen?” 

“Yeah! Daddy almost  _ neeeever  _ gets to cook for guests, so he’s real excited!” Darrell said, legs swinging back and forth as they dangled off the side of his chair. 

“You don’t think he’s gotten out of practice, has he?” Raymond said worriedly.

“Oh my Cob, maybe he HAS! We should totally go help him!” Shannon replied. She slammed her feet down on the floor, kicking out her chair. Laserblast quickly moved in to grab her arm. 

“Shannon, maybe we should just… let your father do his work.” 

There was a spark or two- of course there was. His powers always got so unruly when he got emotional. Eventually, however, Shannon sat down. He sighed in relief, sitting back down himself. 

The dining room was soon filled with a heavenly smell. It had been a while since Laserblast had true, home cooking… His mouth began to water at the prospect. For once, he couldn’t sense the lingering aftertaste of a cherry red sucker. Boxman came in with two trays, singing- Was singing the right word?

“It’s-a summa-kinda-good, you’re gonna love it, you’re gonna wanna put it in your faaaaace…” He sang, spinning around Laserblast’s seat as he dropped the tray down. 

What song even was that? 

He shrugged, opening the platter and letting the steam and the smell waft over him. It was a ham, perfectly arranged with pineapple slices, cooked almost to perfection. Just the sight of it made Laserblast even hungrier. 

So of course he dug in right away. Tearing at the ham like a wild animal, Laserblast forgot what utensils had even looked like. All that mattered was tasting Boxman’s freakishly good cooking, how the j-

Boxman.

He had totally forgotten his table manners! Cob dammit! He looked up apologetically at his host, only to find Boxman was practically mirroring his position. Huh. So both of them were total slobs. Neat. They stared at each other for a second, neither one knowing how to break the silence.

Luckily, they didn’t have to. The bots all laughed, seeing the two of them accidentally match. They joined it, but quickly got back to wolfing their food down. 

“Sho! You like my food, huh?” Boxman said, talking through half of his mouth… for obvious reasons. 

Laserblast nodded. “Y’know, I thought it’d be poisoned, or intentionally terrible or something.” 

“Please. I’m a villain, not a monster,” Boxman said, rolling his eyes. “Besides, I’m a businessman. I know how this works! You spend days mooching up to people then they give you what they want.”

“Mmm. You sure you wanna say that in front of me?”

“Don’t tell me you majored in business, too.” 

“Heh. No. But I don’t really get it. You’ve got this huge factory, you’re booming… Why would you bother going to attack us all day?” 

Boxman paused. “You can’t seriously be trying to get information out of me at the dinner table.”

“Please. I’m a hero, not a cop,” Laserblast fired back with a chuckle. 

“Whatever! Just finish the cob-dang food!” 

The two went back to eating, as Raymond leaned ever so slightly over the table. “Mr. Laserblast, why do they make the uniforms red?”

“Red looks nice,” Laserblast replied, mouth half-full.

“Well, sure, but I think magenta would look NICER.”

“Or orange!” Shannon added. 

“I am Jethro.” 

“I’ll, uh… Take it up with Foxtail,” Laserblast said, getting up. He placed his napkin on his empty plate, dusting himself off. Boxman soon sat up as well. 

“Going so soon, Laserblast?” 

Laserblast sighed, remembering that Boxman was tagging along in the lab this time. “Yep. Lots of work to do.” 

The lad caught up to Laserblast after making his way around the long table, and grinned. “So? What’ll we be workin’ on? Bombs? Brass knuckles that explode? Tax evasion?”

“No!” Laserblast answered, disgruntled. “It’s just some… power experiments. Nothing too big.” 

“Feh. How boring. I suppose I did make a promise. Let me show you how REAL lab work is done!” Boxman grabbed Laserblast by the hand and yanked him into the lab, leaving the door open. 

  
  
  
  


It had been hours. The nighttime power supply had even kicked in. Darrell finally poked his head into the lab. He hated to disturb his daddy’s privacy, but they needed to go back to school! 

“Daddy?”

Darrell saw his father with his arms resting on a lab coat. Both he and Laserblast had fallen asleep at the workbench, and Boxman had draped his coat around the hero.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> whew! so i think im gonna start timeskipping from now on bc laser's routine will become very samey, so i hope that works out. in the meantime, more shenanigans!


End file.
